Currently, periodic visual inspection of an escalator is not only carried out through an on-site inspection by maintenance personnel, but is also carried out through a remote inspection using at least one camera mounted directly above the vicinity of an entrance of the escalator. By performing a remote inspection, external defects of the escalator can be quickly detected such as abnormal movements or damages of steps or handrails of the escalator, the presence of a foreign matter caught between a comb and steps of the escalator, etc.
When an operator at a remote maintenance center conducts a remote visual inspection, the operator first checks to see if there is no passenger on an escalator. Once the operator confirms that there is no passenger on the escalator, the operator manually switches the escalator's operation mode to an inspection mode which operates the escalator at a slower speed and performs a visual inspection through a video image of the escalator. If a passenger is getting on the escalator during the remote inspection, the operator switches the operation mode back to the normal operation mode manually.
However, due to the limitation of the camera view, the operator may not notice the presence of the passenger just before riding on the escalator. Furthermore, since there is a slight time delay in transmission of the video image until the passenger appears on a display of the remote controller, there is a chance that the passenger had already been on the escalator when the operator noticed the presence of the passenger approaching the escalator entrance. In such an instance, if the escalator operation is switched back to the normal operation mode, the speed of the escalator is suddenly changed, which may result in serious accidents.
Therefore, there exists in the art a need for providing an improved escalator remote inspection device capable of providing quick response to a passenger approaching an escalator entrance during a remote inspection.